5 Tips for Packing Down your Campsite

Whenever you head on an adventure into the outdoors, whether you like it or not, it’s going to be a communal experience.

Whether you’re travelling with family or friends, sharing a site with your neighbours, or visiting an isolated spot that someone else will eventually occupy – there is always a sense of community in the outdoors.

This sense of community is what allows us to create memories that last a lifetime, which is why it’s important to ensure that we leave spaces as we found them – ready for the next person who comes across it.

It’s not a pleasant experience for anyone when there’s rubbish left at the campsite, when toilets haven’t been packed down properly, or when campfires are left full of glass, tin and foil – and it makes it really hard for the next set of campers to have a great start.

Take your time packing up, and clearing up your campsite – that way you can get it done right!

As a camping nation, when it comes to packing down – we’ve got to make sure we work together to get it right! With that in mind, here are 5 tips for packing up properly at the end of your trip.

Top 5 Tips for Packing Down your Campsite

1. Be conscious of time

You’ve had a great time camping, and sadly the time has arrived to either move on or go home. While you want to avoid the thought of pack up for as long as possible, it’s important you give yourself enough time to ensure you don’t rush.

Rushing only results in mistakes. You get into the car, ready to drive off and then it hits you, your keys are still in the tent pocket, which is packed up in its bag – which is buried at the bottom of your trailer!

Not taking your time can also result in breaking things – snapping your tent poles because you’re deconstructing them the wrong way to get home faster is not ideal.

Or, you go to use that expensive torch you bought and find that actually, you can’t – because you left it at the campsite!

Not only is your time important to consider, but so is the time of others. Many people love to get an early start on the journey home which is no problem – unless you involve everyone in the process.

Nobody likes being woken up to the sounds of people packing up, especially when it involves sounds of pots crashing into each other or cursing because the tent won’t fit into the bag.

If you’re leaving super early, start packing the night before – so that your morning efforts are minimal and will cause the least disturbance.

2. Take your rubbish with you

The idea of dealing with your own rubbish properly seems obvious and straightforward, but sadly in my experience, it quite frequently isn’t. The approach is simple – what you bring into your campsite, you need to take home with you.

Having a bag of smelly garbage in your car isn’t pleasant, however – it is a part of camping. If you’re lucky enough to camp where bins are provided then feel free to use these, but once they’re full… the responsibility is on you to deal with your rubbish, not the people who placed the bins there.

Please don’t be that person who leaves rubbish next to a bin. Please also don’t be that person who buries rubbish either. Rubbish attracts animals. Even if it’s buried – they will still smell it out and dig it up, which results in a rubbish-strewn campsite.

Not only is this something unpleasant to come across, it can also result in bad habits for the local wildlife.

There’s nothing better than a roaring campfire, but make sure you take the steps to clear it out.

3. Clear your campfire

Dealing with your campfire is not only important for your fellow campers but the entire community more broadly. The simple reality is that a badly managed fire has severe consequences.

When it comes time to depart, ensure that your campfire is completely extinguished (even the embers that aren’t glowing). Use any leftover fluids that you don’t need to pour over the fire. If extra water isn’t available, then you can suffocate it by turning dirt over onto the campfire.

In the event that you don’t have other options, find water from a source close by to extinguish the campfire. Even once you think the campfire is extinguished, throw another splash or turn another shovel of dirt just to be sure. There is no harm in double checking!

Once you’ve extinguished your fire, also ensure that you’ve left no rubbish in the fire pit. While we discourage you from trying to burn glass, tin, or foil – if you do choose to do so, ensure these are pulled from the ashes and placed in your rubbish bag before departing.

Like rubbish in general, nobody appreciates coming across a fire pit full of dangerous debris.

4. Clean your gear at the campsite to avoid double handling

Naturally, you’re probably tired toward the end of your camping trip. The thought of getting home to a hot shower and your own bed is becoming more appealing by the moment. But, you can’t be complacent when it comes to packing down your gear!

You’ve paid good money for quality equipment (hopefully at Snowys). In order to maintain it’s quality, you need to take good care of it. The best thing to do is to start this process at the campsite to limit the double handling you’ll need to do once you get home.

This doesn’t require a whole cupboard of cleaning gear. You can do the little things like shaking out the dirt, drying out your gear, and washing your cutlery and crockery before you hit the road.

That way when you get home, you now only need to do take care of the small tasks, rather than starting everything from scratch.

Note everything down – this way you can plan for your next adventure!

5. Keep a list to make next time better

During your adventure and especially during pack down, you’ll undoubtedly remember things you’ve forgotten. You also might come up with ideas on how to make improvements, or discover your gear needs repairing or replacing.

Take the stress out of all of this by having a sheet of paper or notebook handy. That way you can record all these notes before you forget, and get everything sorted before your next adventure.

This is especially important if you need to repair or replace any equipment. Sometimes spare parts can take some time to source, or new products may take a while to get used to.

Give yourself the peace of mind that when the next adventure calls, you have prepared and organised yourself better than your last trip, and you’ll be ready to hit the road again!

Are you a master of leaving no trace? Let us in on your best packing tips below.

Currently a resident gear-expert here at Snowys, the outdoors has always been Ben’s second home. His adventures have taken him to almost every continent in the world. He's hiked in the United States, mountain biked in Cambodia, 4WD through South Africa, kayaked in Laos, skydived at Uluru, white water rafted in New Zealand and much more. However, nothing beats home where he's guided groups across Australia through the Red Centre, along the Great Ocean Rd and onto Kangaroo Island for many years before joining Snowys. Ben continues to involve himself in the outdoors through volunteering with Operation Flinders and Scouts Australia. While many say Ben has a poorly developed sense of fear and no idea of the odds against him, he puts his adventures down to the planning and preparation of his gear that he’s bought from Snowys.